Liel leaped from where he stood earlier with Naomi, and they tumbled on the hard clearing ground.
Another dark thing shot down. They didn't have the time to get up, so he did the only thing he could do.
Liel rolled over until he was on top of Naomi, shielding her from whatever was hitting them from above. The impact was as he expected – like a dozen heavy bricks being dropped directly on his back.
He wasn't strong enough to deter the effect. His arms buckled down by the powerful force, pressing him against Naomi's body. The pain followed right after.
"Liel!" Naomi screamed in panic as the dark thing hit the ground right beside their head.
A second later, it dissipated into nothing and only left a crack on the ground as evidence of its existence.
Liel groaned, feeling the throbbing pain on his unprotected back. 'What the heck, System?'
[The System had nothing to do with it.]
'You have everything to do with it, bastard!'
"Well, well, well," a new voice came from their right. "What a lovely couple!"
Liel turned to the voice's direction and found a girl probably around the same age as them approaching casually. He glared at his apparent attacker.
She was a bit on the tall side. Skinny, with dark blonde hair in a horrible haircut – in his opinion. Due to some dark energy-like things lashing from the wooden staff in her right hand, her skin appeared darker.
"Who are you?" Liel gritted his teeth, pushing himself up from Naomi and trying to help as they stood side by side.
"Oh?" the badly-cut, blonde-haired attacker scrutinized him and Naomi.
Instinctively, Liel stepped forward to shield his girlfriend's counterpart in this universe from the watchful eyes of his PvP opposite.
"You really don't know me?" the stranger asked, not believing him.
"You know her?" Naomi inquired.
Liel glanced at her, spotting the red-haired girl pulling her small knife from the pouch on his hip. Against the obviously long-ranged attacker, such a small knife wouldn't be worth much.
But it was better than nothing, nonetheless.
"Should I know you?" Liel directed the question back to the badly-cut blonde-haired attacker. He also brandished his own Stone Fang Dagger, holding it out in front of him.
A laugh was her response.
Then, a wisp of dark energy shot from the wooden staff. Precisely, from the red orb on top of it.
Liel and Naomi dodge to the side. They went back to the forest, seeking protection. Some wisps of the dark energy shot after them. They collided against sturdy trees and the hard ground.
Crouching behind an especially large tree, Liel shared a look with Naomi. "I think she targets me. You must go."
The freckled girl shook her head, red strands swaying slightly. "We," she emphasized her words, "Must go together."
"She has nothing to do with you."
"And you do?" Naomi narrowed her sky blue eyes at him. "You said you don't know her?"
"I don't," he told her without mentioning, 'Aside from the fact that she apparently attacked us because the fucking System activated PvP mode without my permission.'
[You think the System is weak.]
'Oh, you're such a bitch just because of that?'
Liel groaned and massaged his temple. He glanced at her empty quiver. Too bad her arrows were spent to kill a canis picoon. He should've picked them again so she could reuse them.
"What does she want you, then?" Naomi's voice wavered. Must be because of the previous event that made her cry out of the blue and then being shot down by dark energy from the strange girl.
"To kill me, probably."
"Why?"
'That's a good question. Why does she want to kill me?' Liel silently asked the System.
[Is it not that obvious?]
'Can you stop this PvP nonsense?'
[PvP is a fight to the death.]
'But, can you stop it or not?!' Liel started to lose his already thin patience.
[Proposing PvP cancellation.]
Liel clicked his tongue, still gripping the stone dagger in his hand.
[PvP cancellation rejected.]
'That bitch!' Liel groaned. 'Send it again.'
[Proposing PvP cancellation.]
[Again.]
Liel swore that if the badly-cut blonde-haired girl refused his proposal to cease fire, he'd go there and give her a taste of his fist.
[PvP cancellation rejected.]
[Again.]
[Do you want to send it again?]
[Third times the charms, is it not?]
'No need.' Liel huffed and pushed himself up, his back still against the huge tree.
"What are you going to do?" Naomi followed suit, looking him in the eye.
"I'll fight her myself. You stay here." Liel turned around and stepped away from the tree.
However, Naomi suddenly jerked his arm, pulling him back behind the sturdy wall of the tree for protection. If she were late even for a second, Liel would be tossed to the side by the dark energy that shot past where he would go.
"She can't be far," Naomi guessed, "No mage can cast a spell farther than a hundred meters with no preparations."
Liel was silent, contemplating what he had just heard. 'If I get too far away from the bitch, is this PvP going to end itself?'
The System was silent for a few moments. By the lack of smart-ass reply, Liel's guess would be correct.
"We have to run," he told Naomi.
"Her dark magic will catch us in no time. No matter how fast you may claim."
But then again, 'The bitch is only going after me,' Liel thought to himself. 'If I get away and get out of the PvP range, the mode will be deactivated. Then, she'll have no reason to attack again.'
The System did not respond still.
'I know I'm right and you're just a salty loser. You hear that, System?'
[The System has no obligation to give any comment.]
'Then why are you even here?' Liel wanted to roll his eyes, but he refrained from doing that. Naomi was looking at her now.
"I know what we should do."
"Luring her here and ambushing her when she comes near?" Naomi supplied, surprising him a little.
"No."
Though, that wasn't such a bad idea either. He just didn't want Naomi to be dragged into his own problem. That was all. Besides, with the power-up item he got from hunting canis picoon earlier, Liel should be faster than usual.
"I have to get away from her and outrun her area of effect. Once I do that, she'll stop attacking us.
"You sound so sure." Naomi regarded a critical look. "What do I do?"
"Just hide here until I get her off my back."
"That doesn't sound fair."
"Again, you have nothing to do with this." Liel felt a little bad about her tearful face. He knew it wasn't the best time, but he had to ask, "What happened earlier?"
Naomi stiffened, gaze lowered to the ground, decidedly avoiding his gaze. "My mom sent a telepathic message. My father, he-... he died."
Liel's eyes widened, "I'm sorry," although he felt no condolences at all.
For once, he did not know Naomi's father in this universe. Then, if her father were the same man, too, he would probably forbid Naomi from meeting him. Just like how it was in his previous life.
"There is this… mysterious illness in my village," Naomi told him. "All male, from little boys to old people, their temperature rises up from morning to afternoon. Then, through the afternoon until the sun set, they felt immense pain in their stomach. It happened again at midnight."
Liel shared only a slight nod of sympathy.
That was one of the Top 10 Strangest Things he had ever heard throughout his life. Right between a poo-powered bus and that super-villain wannabe who stole a large globe from a mall using a helicopter. Embarrassingly, they shared a room in prison.
"How long does it happen?"
"It's been about a month. We don't know the cause. It happens overnight. Even the healers from town don't have a cure."
Something nagged in the back of his mind. "What's the name of your village?"
"Ashwell. Why?"
Liel smoothed his expression. "I've heard it before, but never went there."
"Don't bother. Every man stepping foot in my village will end up hurt like the others."
'The quest is to burn her village,' Liel realized now. "That sounds like a curse, don't you think?"
Naomi nodded sadly. "The village leader said so too. But there's no mage powerful enough to even identify the curse. If it is indeed a curse."
[Enemy approaching.]
The System reported helpfully. Something it usually did not do.
Liel gripped his stone dagger tighter in an alert.
The atmosphere suddenly turned cold, darkened as mist surrounded them. 'Must be the bitch's magic or something.'
[You might want to duck before–]
Liel hastily dragged Naomi down with him.
A dark energy shot from the side, missing their heads by centimeters. They huddled on the ground as other shots headed towards the tree.
The energy shots left a scorching mark, shaped like a big crack on the large tree.
"She's coming," Liel stated the obvious. He looked around, but the dark mist surrounding them grew thicker with the seconds.
"I think I've seen this before," Naomi told him. Her sky blue wide eyes studied the mist. "The village is surrounded by a mist like this, the night before people got sick. I don't think it has anything to do with the sickness because no one else ever mentions seeing the mist."
"So, she might be the one who caused the mysterious illness," Liel concluded, finally finding a reason to win this PvP. Even if he should kill the opponent.
He could do this.
'Can you locate the bitch?' Liel asked the System.
[Unable to locate the enemy due to the user still on level 1.]
[It means you suck.]
"We have to get her," Naomi stated. "If no mage in my village knows about the curse, I doubt we can undo it on our own."
"Oh? You're pretty clever, huh."
Liel tensed when he suddenly heard the bitch's voice in front of him. But before he could do anything, the dark energy surrounded him.
[You are being suppressed to move, attack, or use skills.]
He couldn't move.
[Yes, you couldn't. How do you like it?]